Case Study 3

Case Study 3: Rogers, MN

The homeowners took pride in building this walk-out rambler 16 years ago and the kitchen is now outdated. The great room opens to an informal eating area and kitchen with a dividing oak railing. With this layout, the kitchen is a very important part of the overall feeling of the living area. The kitchen was ordinary with a laminate counter top, no back splash, and linoleum flooring. Essentially, a boring kitchen. The homeowners decided to update their kitchen by bringing in new flooring, counter top, and adding a back splash. The primary goal was to create a “Wow” factor.

Before

This kitchen seems to be the same color with the floor, counter tops, and the back splash all being beige. There was no visual interest to welcome people into the kitchen.

After

There is more visual interest with the new counter tops, flooring, and back splash. The counter tops themselves are a “Wow” factor simply because of the movement of the granite. It’s a beautiful slab.

The floors bring a richness into the room causing a contrast between the cupboards and the floor boards. In addition, laying the floor boards at an angle provides interest for the eye.

Granite Picture 1

Granite Picture 2

The pictures do not do justice to the beautiful slab that the homeowners picked out. There are greens, grays, a deep burgundy, tans, and an influx of sparkling material to give a sleek shiny appearance. The burgundy ties the new dark floor in, and the green and gray color stays with the great room color theme. The granite counter top also brings a modern edge to the kitchen to juxtaposed against the traditional cabinets. I helped the homeowners by asking questions like “What type of feeling in the room are you trying to create?” Also,” how much modern versus traditional style did they want?” The homeowners came back with they wanted to have basically a traditional home with a modern touch. This is why we stayed with the traditional wooden floor with a more modern granite counter tops.

Back Splash

The back splash even has the traditional subway tiles with glass tiles to again mix the traditional versus the modern look.